In this Sunday’s Gospel Jesus responds to our human condition of the “fear to the uncertainties of life”.

A few days ago this lady told me: “Sometimes I fear life because one makes plans and has dreams and then family storms appear that change our plans, however “my antidote” against fear is daily prayer. This is where I put my trust in Jesus and He tells me: “Do not be afraid”.

Today we hear Jesus also tell his disciples and us as well “Do not be afraid”. He knows our human conditions, our limitations, the emotional and psychological obstacles we face in life, but Jesus took on our human conditions, except sin, “to give us life in abundance”. Jn. 10:10.

In the Gospel there is an invitation from the Lord to Peter to walk on troubled waters despite his “limits of faith”. Now, where is Peter? Today Peter is you and I called by the Lord to find Him “in the troubled waters of every day life” by putting our eyes on Him and praying with faith to “get into the storm” and make us aware of the needs and fears of others.

Our brothers and sisters suffer, especially the elderly, the sick, the single mothers, and the couples with marital problems. They all suffer alone and abandoned. They live in the troubled waters of life and hope that “someone will help them face the storms with faith and hope by giving them assistance and love”.

When we set our eyes on Jesus we sometimes discover “many storms in our homes, communities, society and life”, but we then must listen to the words of Jesus: “Do not be afraid….I have conquered the world”. This is the message that we must bring to the world, a message of encouragement, joy and Christian hope.

Let us pray to the Lord in the Eucharist and in our prayers to feel peace and to bring peace and courage through good council and through the readings of the Word of God to the needy and above all to remind them: “that decisions should not be made in troubled times because we could sink, like Peter. We must keep our eyes of faith fixed on Jesus who encourages us and gives us calm. Go ahead, it is I. Do not be afraid!